yes, i already have a monitor and keyboard, although i am going to have to buy a USB mouse. (Unless i use the "puck" mouse with the 2 inch cord that came with my original imac) I am not eligible for a education discount, so i guess the intel core solo will do. Thanks!

yes, i already have a monitor and keyboard, although i am going to have to buy a USB mouse. (Unless i use the "puck" mouse with the 2 inch cord that came with my original imac) I am not eligible for a education discount, so i guess the intel core solo will do. Thanks!

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Do yourself a favor and buy yourself a nice USB mouse, don't force yourself to suffer using those "puck" mice.

I highly recommend the MX series of mice from logitech. I have a Logitech MX500 and I love it. That said it, and my keyboard, are soon to be replaced with this-

In my opinion, no. I qualify for an EDU discount, so that throws it off a bit (though you can always order online and not have to show ID), but between the difficulty of adding RAM myself, the features (included screen even if you don't need it, graphics card, faster processor) and the hard drive, the iMac is a much better deal than a Mini. The lowest-end MacBook is also a viable option.

In my opinion, no. I qualify for an EDU discount, so that throws it off a bit (though you can always order online and not have to show ID), but between the difficulty of adding RAM myself, the features (included screen even if you don't need it, graphics card, faster processor) and the hard drive, the iMac is a much better deal than a Mini. The lowest-end MacBook is also a viable option.

By small games, what do you mean?

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The iMac is a better buy in my opinion. But if you already have a LCD, a mouse, keyboard, and speakers, then the Mac Mini becomes a viable option (especially if on a budget or you just need a computer for mainly basic tasks such as the internet).

I think the mini, even the solo model, is probably a good choice for you, but two things:

1) Do yourself a favor and spend the extra $100 to order it with 1GB from Apple, or if you have someone you know who's very handy with computers, have them install more RAM for you later (it's only really a good deal to buy the RAM yourself if you are going to the full 2GB). I say "very handy" because I just put RAM in one, and it is NOT easy--they're extremely tightly packed, and you wouldn't want a novice (or somebody who wasn't VERY careful) poking around in there.

2) Remeber that if you ever plan on burning DVDs it's a relatively modest $50 to upgrade to the DVD burner on the Solo model, and again based on the upgrade hassle, I'd recommend just buying it preinstalled.

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